i don't know about you, but i find the two trickiest parts of baking are the flour, and the dairy substitute. well, let's be serious - i find the trickiest part of baking to be following the recipe! i love to add a little of this, and change this ingredient for that, and sometimes measuring is just for the birds... which is why i mostly cook, and only bake because these suderman fellas love their cookies! but back to the point - the flour and the butter. you can easily spend a small fortune and a whole lot of time tracking down and collecting different flours, xanthum gum, guar gum... gluten free flour blending is a job in itself! and half the time, you can go to all this trouble and expense, and the finished product is lack luster! so what's the solution? well, i think it probably ends up being different for each of us. keeping in mind that i'm simple folk when it comes to baking, i'll share with you my secrets ;) for flour, i don't blend my own. those days are long gone for me! i have been there and done that, and after many failed attempts, i now stick to buying flour blends that can replace gluten-containing flour in a 1:1 ratio. my favorite one so far is this guy:

i buy this one from home sense - it's not inexpensive, i think i usually pay between $20-$25, but i like it a lot better than some of the supermarket brands i've tried before. it contains a fair bit of coconut flour and i like that! i especially stay away from any flours made from beans - that flavor is just not my cup of tea. if you don't mind it, Bob's Red Mill makes an all purpose baking flour that some families i've worked with have settled on. personally, i like the flavor and texture of this one quite a bit better. with this flour blend, i just go ahead and choose regular old gluten-containing recipes, and use this flour instead of wheat flour. it has worked wonders and been a pretty easy switch, especially compared to some of the flours i've used in the past. if you and your loves can eat dairy, then you're golden - find your flour and go for it! if you need to create dairy-free baking, this is a really fantastic recipe. it uses coconut oil, and the cookies were actually moist! they were good enough that we finished them all in less than a day. i have been craving them since, and i think we'll settle on this recipe as our staple chocolate chip cookies! there's something about nailing down a cookie recipe that makes me feel like i'm running my household well... dirty toilets? maybe. a serious laundry pile? i might have one. but rest assured we have great cookies on the counter! in case you missed it, here is the link for the chocolate chip cookie recipe:http://www.welltraveledwife.com/2013/03/coconut-chocolate-chip-cookies.htmli didn't use the coconut because i didn't have any, and for chocolate chips i used these ones from enjoy life. i have to say, these chunks are a lot better than the tiny little ones made by the same company. these were a treat!

there are a few other things you need to be aware of when it comes to gluten free baking - baking soda, powder, sugar, cocoa, and anything else you might add to your batter. be sure to investigate your favorite brands of these things to make sure you're not sabotaging your efforts! also, if you are newly gluten free or have had your ingredients in your pantry for a long time, be sure that you haven't dipped a gluten-contaminated utensil into your container at any time. for example, if you were baking with gluten last christmas, and there's any chance that you might have put your measuring cup or spoon into the sugar after having touched flour with it, then your sugar is contaminated and you'll need to replace it before it is safely gluten free.

last but not least, be sure that your tools are safe! there's something about a hand mixer that just begs batter to get stuck in the nooks and crannies. if you have used your mixer for baking with gluten in the past, i would strongly recommend dropping that mixer off at the thrift store and investing in a new one. it's just not worth the risk of having an old crumb fall into your batter, and hand mixers are relatively inexpensive. a sweet investment if you have your heart set on baking. if that's not in your budget at the moment, i can relate, it wasn't in mine either when i was first diagnosed with celiac disease. i waited a good two years before i replaced my hand mixer, and in the mean time i used a fork for everything. bring it on muscles! and don't forget about your baking sheets - if you have ever used your cookie sheets for gluten, you'll want to replace those too. there's just no way to know what that material has absorbed. again, if you're not looking to make that investment at the moment, use parchment paper to protect your gluten free baking from your dirty past... i mean gluten.

you might notice that the cookies on the left are shaped more like a 3D ball, and the ones on the right are flatter like a traditional chocolate chip cookie. i did an experiment, and the ones on the left are better. go for the 3D cookie for sure!enjoy -

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my name is jess, and i'm a mama, a passionate foodie, and i love to learn - and i'm celiac. actually, so is my son. combining that minor detail with my love of food and life has given me great reason to create a lifestyle that is both gluten free, and a heck of a lot of fun. i'd love to help you do the same!